Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, who died in a plane crash this morning, was a politician who ensured that files and projects did not remain stuck.
The 66-year-old NCP chief, affectionately known as "Dada" (elder brother) in Maharashtra, was known for often taking on-the-spot decisions during meetings and field visits.
Ajit Pawar addressing an event on January 15
Leaders close to him said the NCP chief would always say a straightforward "yes" if the work could be completed or a definitive "no" if it could not.
Ajit Pawar, a six-time Maharashtra deputy chief minister, had a reputation for being a blunt administrator.
He was also known to be a workaholic and was famous for his punctuality.
Ajit Pawar addressing a public meeting on January 11
He used to start his day early and would often reach the office before his staff.
His fellow deputy chief minister, Eknath Shinde, said he would always do whatever he committed to.
"I will always remember him (Pawar) for his punctuality and commitments. He didn't have 'dekhta hu, karta hu' (I will see) in his dictionary," Shinde told NDTV.
"Ek baar jo bhi kaam haanth me liya, usko poora karte the (he would always do whatever he committed to)," Shinde said while praising his "true friend and elder brother" Pawar, who served as his colleague in different cabinets and was also his deputy when he led the Maharashtra government from 2022 to 2024.
He also recalled how Pawar, as the then finance minister, made fiscal arrangements when his government, in 2024, rolled out the Ladki Bahin Yojana, which provides monthly assistance of Rs 1,500 to women in the state.
NCP's Brijmohan Srivastava said that no one can fill the void left by Ajit Dada.
Ajit Pawar during an official meeting on November 18, 2025
"He was very popular among the party workers. Many people would approach him with their problems, but Dada was so straightforward that he would only say yes to the tasks that were actually feasible. That is how Ajit Dada was," Srivastava said.
"Sometimes he would call me at four in the morning. He was a person who worked 24 hours a day," he said.
Ajit Pawar's Plane Crash
Ajit Pawar was killed after an aircraft carrying him from Mumbai to his home turf, Baramati, crashed this morning.
The aircraft, a Learjet 45 operated by a private company, VSR Ventures, crashed around 8:45 am, killing Pawar and four other persons on board.
The plane was reportedly attempting a second approach to Baramati Airport when it crashed.
Pawar had left Mumbai around 8 am and was scheduled to address four election rallies in Baramati ahead of local body polls.
Ajit Pawar's Entry Into Politics
Ajit Pawar was born on July 22, 1959, to Asha and Anantrao Pawar in Deolali Pravara, a village in Maharashtra's Ahmednagar district. His academic pursuits were cut short after the death of his father, who worked at a famous studio in Mumbai.
He then followed the footsteps of his uncle and his father's younger brother, Sharad Pawar, into politics in 1982, when he was elected to the board of a sugar factory.
In 1991, he was elected to the Lok Sabha from Baramati and later vacated the seat for his uncle, who then became defence minister in Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao's government.
Ajit Pawar then served as Baramati MLA for eight terms from 1991.
He is survived by his wife and Rajya Sabha MP Sunetra Pawar and two sons, Jay Pawar and Parth Pawar.
